Wow! Where to begin December is over and January is halfway through and the holidays have come and gone. This time of the year is always been the toughest for me. So many people find joy and comfort and the holidays and they always make me feel disconnected, mournful, and insufficient. For the last 3 years, cold water swimming is the one thing that gets me through the December/January seasonal depression I've battled since childhood. This year the pandemic has added an extra layer of stress and anxiety particularly in deciding who to socialize/swim with and who not to. It's hard to reconcile risk and the desires of one's heart to be near the people that matter. I am thankful for the Pandemic Pod and the swims we've had. I'll let the photos from the last month or so speak for themselves. ;)
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| Getting in for my first ice km. |
Starting at the beginning of December- I very nearly did a thing! I swam just over a km on December 3rd when the water temp was between 40.8 and 42.2- making it very nearly an ice km! Then... I did it again, and again, and again..you get the point. The waters going between 40-42 for the last month and I'm getting at least 1km in once a week. So far, the warm-up process is going smoothly with no difficulty getting dressed and no car sauna needed. With Matt supporting me I think I can go for longer and farther than the ice km. I would like to do a few longer swims at 42 and have him support me first, but it's a hard sell (and the water is cooling down). It's not that he doesn't support what I do it says just not interesting for him and it may be a little scary to watch the recovery process.
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| After my first ice km! |
Since the Solstice passed, the Pandemic Pod are starting to get our sunrise swims back. Golly it's nice to swim from darkness into dawn. The metaphor there isn't a stretch. Every morning I swim is a gift and the sunrises are a cherry on top.
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| Actual average morning in December. |
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| Just an average morning (I wish!) |
vs.
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| The lights from Vancouver on a cloudy morning. |
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| Like swimming in the clouds. |
Classes started back up two weeks ago, so once again my time is becoming more and more scarce. Oddly, I'm better a writing blog post while I'm in school. What can I say? I'm an A+ procrastinator and I get an A+ in anxiety about long-term/distant circumstances beyond my control. Like fieldwork assignments. Ugh. I have rotation planned for next winter/spring, but whether or not my first one is over the summer or in the fall is still up in the air. Like everyone else, I'm crossing my fingers for a fall rotation, but it's not really up to me. Okay. Enough of the swim/life updates. Back to schoolwork.
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Christmas day: 22 minutes and 1008m at 40 degrees.
Warmup scared Matt, but was totally fine. |
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